Split Screen

by CBC

Welcome to Split Screen, an examination of the utterly captivating, sometimes unsettling world of entertainment and pop culture. From reality TV gone awry, to the cult of celebrity, each season of Split Screen takes listeners on an evocative journey inside the world of showbiz. Ex-contestants, producers, and cultural critics uncover complicated truths behind TV’s carefully curated facades, and question what our entertainment reveals about us. Split Screen: sometimes reality is twisted. Season 1 | Kid Nation: The true story behind one of reality TV’s most controversial experiments. Season 2 | Thrill Seekers: A multi-million dollar media experiment. Would you fall for it? Season 3 | Who Replaced Avril Lavigne? Was the Canadian punk pop sensation replaced by a look-alike? Season 4 | Bachelor of Buckingham Palace: The story behind one of the world’s most bizarre reality dating shows.

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

Never even heard of kid nation but I’m not a reality tv gal. However, Loved the pod. Fast paced, narrator is lovely to listen to, the right balance of journalism and story telling.

Lmilly · Jul 2024

Great podcast, fun to listen to in the background when I’m doing something else. Nice analyzation of society and kids’ portrayal of it reflected in their world

penguin 🐧🐧🐧 · Jun 2024

Finally a podcast about kid nation! I thought kid nation was a fever dream I made up when I was 8. A great listen about one of the strangest reality tv shows of all time.

polkadotpollo · Jun 2024

This seems like it is going to be hard-hitting journalism into the exploitation of kids, but it ends up being a celebration of the format. It comes complete with breathless recaps manufactured dramatic moments and after-the-fact interviews with participants. The intent might be to create a critique, but the host becomes an unwitting cheerleader of everything terrible about "reality" television.

Otherlleft · Jun 2024

The topic is fascinating, and when the host stays on topic the podcast is great, but…when the editorializing kicks in, or when today’s political points get inserted into events that took place 20 years ago, the podcast goes wrong. It is almost too cringy at points to listen to, a major editorial error.

AKALynnie · Jul 2024

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.